Ben & Books

“Look outside, if your greatest heroes left you this world, were they ever really heroes at all”. When Queen of Faces was first announced, it immediately became one of my more anticipated reads of 2026. And I wasn’t disappointed, Queen of Faces is a brilliant fantasy debut for Petra Lord, with a brilliantly unique premise that is complimented by its wonderful prose, exciting action, deep characters, and a very inventive magic system that pushes both the limits of fantasy magic, and our understanding of gender identity in the modern world.

The story of Queen of Faces in stitched together brilliantly by its beautifully unique magic system. Featuring both a deep array of powerful and dangerous spells, and unique magical abilities used by certain characters blessed by magic, the action in the story becomes an incredibly exciting blend of fast-paced, creative battles and unique and brilliant solutions to problems. The body swapping element of the story adds another layer to the magic system, as characters swap and change between bodies to create unique combinations in powers and surprising moments in the story, as well as using it to recover from potentially fatal injuries.

The world in Queen of Faces is a vivid, dark place that truly feels alive and real. Sea levels rise to dangerous levels whilst riots erupt across the city and war looms ever dangerously in the background. The class division in the city of Elmidde creates a tension that threatens to spill over into violence throughout the book, as the wealthy are blessed with the use of magic whilst the poor are driven further into poverty, as the rich swap between bodies on a whim whilst the poor suffer from illness, disability, and injury, often forced into the wrong type of body for lack of any alternative. The world of Caimor is a fascinating mix of magic, mystery, and murder where powerful mages and violent criminals mix in a society on the brink of catastrophe.

It is in its characters where Queen of Faces truly shines. The dynamic and development of Ana and Wes throughout the story is fascinating as their wildly different personalities clash and they interact with powerful allies and enemies alike. The body swapping action has a powerful effect on the characters too. In a world where anyone can switch bodies, how can you trust that anyone is who they say they are? Queen of faces also boasts a dazzling range of side characters, from heroic magicians like Adam Weaver and Nicholas Carriwitch to dangerous criminals such as Lyna Wethers and Clementine who use their magical gifts to cause chaos and violence across Caimor, all whilst the dark mage Khaiovhe lurks in the background, a malevolent and highly dangerous threat who inspires fear with just the mention of her name.

Queen of Faces is an exciting, beautifully written fantasy, that wonderfully blends deep, complex characters with fast-paced action and a unique magic system to create a vibrant world that feels completely alive, whilst also challenging our ideas based around gender identity. Queen of Faces not only manages to live up to the hype surrounding it, but it exceeds it in a fashion that will no doubt leave it in the running for book of the year for many people at the end of 2026, including me.